Page 51 of Wild Card (Advantage Play 1)

“Ma’am? I haven’t got all day. Take this and go.” The concierge waves the voucher in the air, and I grab it with sweaty palms then move to search for my seat when Jack stops me with his hand on my arm.

“Hey.”

Gaze narrowed, I bite out, “Jack? What are you doing here?”

“What? I can’t show my support?”

My nostrils flare as I shake out of his grasp. “I can’t do this with you right now. I need to focus.”

“Look, you can focus in a minute. Right now, I need to talk to you about your boyfriend.”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I object.

“Fine. Call it whatever you want, but messing with Kingston Romano in any form is still a bad idea—”

“Will you shut up?” I hiss, looking around the casino. My pulse spikes when I see multiple sets of eyes watching our argument, including a particularly interested guy that I’m afraid to place, but the tiny diamond tattoo under his left eye is enough to make me shiver. Shit.

“Don’t talk private shit in public, Jack. It’s common sense.”

He pushes me to a darkened corner a few feet away. “Is this better?”

“Not really,” I counter, folding my arms across my chest.

I don’t have time for this.

“Well, then maybe you’ll take me up on it the next time I offer to go somewhere private instead of letting one of Kingston’s big goons come to the rescue.” Jack leans forward, getting in my face as his arms vibrate with frustration.

People are still looking in our direction, making my skin tingle with awareness, but I don’t know how to get out of this.

“Look,” I spit out quietly. “I didn’t know Diece would be stepping in like that. But you should be glad it was him and not Kingston. You might think I’m the one who doesn’t know who she’s dealing with, but I think it’s you, Jack. You need to back off, or you’re going to get hurt.”

With a scoff, Jack scrubs his hands over his face. “You’re probably right about that, Ace. I’m risking my neck for you, and you aren’t even grateful. From the shit I’ve heard about Kingston,”—he shakes his head—“you’re gonna end up in a body bag.”

I take a second to consider the likelihood of his comment coming to fruition. Is it possible? Would Kingston hurt me? Looking back on every individual interaction we’ve had, I almost want to laugh at the possibility. No. I don’t see that happening. He might put on a facade with everyone else, but I know him. The real him. The one who wouldn’t hurt a fly if it wasn’t warranted. Sure, he can be scary, and I have no doubt he could hurt someone if the situation arose, but I don’t think I have anything to be afraid of. I’m sure of it.

“Kingston wouldn’t hurt me,” I state as Jack studies me carefully.

“Well, if it isn’t him, then it’ll be one of his enemies, Ace. The guy has a rap sheet a mile long, and don’t even get me started on the people he’s connected to. You have no idea what you stepped in.”

I’m so sick of this. Standing on my toes for an extra inch of height, I get in his face that’s red with anger. “And you do?”

“Yeah, Ace. I—”

“The Sin Poker Tournament is about to begin. Remember, there is no flash photography, and all cellular devices must be turned off. Thank you.” The announcement echoes through the open floor plan of the casino, interrupting whatever Jack was going to say.

But it doesn’t matter anyway.

“Look, Jack. I gotta go. Thanks for your concern, but I trust Kingston.”

Stepping toward the crowd near the poker table, Jack’s voice calls out, “Yeah, but are you sure you’re trusting the right guy?”

I hesitate for the briefest of seconds before shaking off his comment and focusing on the tournament that I’ve been preparing for since I was a little girl. I can’t worry about my future right now because I’m too busy avenging my past.

Jack and Kingston can wait.

Chapter Thirty

Ace

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